1st quarter recap: Iowa 14, Indiana 3

By BTN.com staff, 6 years ago

1st quarter recap: Iowa 14, Indiana 3

By BTN.com staff, 6 years ago

Iowa aired it out to the tune of 84 passing yards in the quarter, and the Hawkeyes lead 14-3 at the end of the first quarter. Iowa took the game’s first lead after James Vandenberg found Kevonte Martin-Manley open for a 24-yard touchdown pass on the last play of a six-play, 71-yard drive.

Iowa made the score 14-0 when Christian Kirksey intercepted a Nate Sudfeld pass and returned it for a touchdown. Indiana polished off a 50-yard drive when Mitch Ewald drilled a 45-yard field goal to make the score 14-3.

The Hawkeyes will start the second quarter with the ball on their own 21-yard line.

Player on the spot: Iowa RB Damon Bullock. He will have to carry the load with leading rusher Mark Weisman out with injury. Playing for the first time since suffering a concussion on Sept. 15, Bullock looked good last week, running for 107 yards in a loss at Northwestern. If Bullock and Iowa can run, it will take pressure off a struggling passing game. By the way: Indiana’s rush defense is last in the Big Ten (222.5 ypg).

Key matchup: Indiana pass game vs. Iowa defense. The Hoosiers’ best defense is a good offense. Indiana’s attack is No. 2 in the Big Ten (443.4 ypg), No. 1 in passing (286.6 ypg) and No. 3 in scoring (34.3 ppg). The Hawkeye defense had played well most of the season until the past two weeks. Penn State had 504 yards and Northwestern had 433. That’s 937 yards, people. The Hawkeyes have the No. 7 Big Ten defense (355.0 ypg) and are No. 5 vs. the pass (196.5 ypg).

Key number: 3, touchdown passes for Iowa’s James Vandenberg. He had 25 last season.

Key note: Indiana’s go-go up-tempo attack runs a play every 21 seconds on average. Iowa’s defense needs to be ready, but it saw a fast-paced attack last week at Northwestern.

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